Report for the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe
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Strasbourg, 13 December 2012 ACFC/SR/III(2012)005 THIRD REPORT SUBMITTED BY POLAND PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 25, PARAGRAPH 2 OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES Received on 13 December 2012 1 3rd REPORT FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE ON THE IMPLEMENTATION BY THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES Warsaw, 2012 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................................4 PART I: GENERAL................................................................................................................................................6 1. Characteristics of the political system, administrative division, geographical distribution of national and ethnic minorities..................................................................................................................................6 1.1 Characteristics of the political system, administrative division.............................................6 1.2 Geographical distribution of national and ethnic minorities.................................................6 2. The status of international law in national legislation...........................................................................7 3. The number of national and ethnic minorities…....................................................................................8 4. Characteristics of national and ethnic minorities……...........................................................................9 4.1 General characteristics..........................................................................................................9 4.2 Characteristics of the individual national and ethnic minorities in Poland…….................13 4.3 Characteristics of the community using the regional language……….................................33 5. Description of the situation in the areas inhabited by the individual minorities.................................34 6. Basic data………...................................................................................................................................36 PART II: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES..................................................................................................................37 Article 1....................................................................................................................................................37 Article 2....................................................................................................................................................37 Article 3....................................................................................................................................................38 Article 4....................................................................................................................................................41 Article 5....................................................................................................................................................49 Article 6....................................................................................................................................................60 Article 7....................................................................................................................................................68 Article 8....................................................................................................................................................69 Article 9....................................................................................................................................................77 Article 10..................................................................................................................................................92 Article 11..................................................................................................................................................95 Article 12..................................................................................................................................................99 Article 13................................................................................................................................................110 Article 14................................................................................................................................................111 Article 15................................................................................................................................................118 Article 16................................................................................................................................................120 Article 17................................................................................................................................................121 Article 18................................................................................................................................................121 Article 19................................................................................................................................................127 PART III: AUTHORITIES AND INSTITUTIONS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF POLICY TOWARDS MINORITIES AND ACTIONS UNDERTAKEN BY THEM........................................128 PART IV: DATA REGARDING CRIME...........................................................................................................144 CONCLUSION....................................................................................................................................................149 ANNEXES Annex no. 1 – Legal status The Polish Constitution……………...............................................................................................................3 Act on National and Ethnic Minorities and Regional Language……………….............................................7 Provisions regarding participation in public life.............................................................................................9 Provisions regarding language.......................................................................................................................22 Provisions regarding culture..........................................................................................................................56 Provisions regarding education......................................................................................................................58 Provisions contained in the codes..................................................................................................................82 Provisions contained in bilateral agreements................................................................................................89 2 Annex no. 2 - General characteristics of national and ethnic minorities and communities using the regional language Annex no. 3 - Distribution of national and ethnic minorities and communities using the regional language Annex no. 4 - National and ethnic minorities and the community using the regional language by place of residence Annex no.- 5 - Number of Polish citizens who declare belonging to national and ethnic minorities in the individual Voivodeship, and the number of people declaring the use of Kashubian language at home in the individual Voivodeships Annex no. 6 - List of Communes entered under Article 10 of the Act of 6 January 2005 on National and Ethnic Minorities and Regional Language (Journal of Laws No. 17, item. 141, as amended) in the Official Register of Communes, in which the auxiliary language is used Annex no. 7- List of Communes entered under Article 12 of the Act of 6 January 2005 on National and Ethnic Minorities and Regional Language (Journal of Laws No. 17, item. 141, as amended) in the Official Register of Communes, where the names in a minority language are used Annex no. 8- Summary of the comments to the 3rd Report to the Secretary General on the implementation by the Republic of Poland of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities 3 INTRODUCTION Presented document is the third report on the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, prepared by Republic of Poland for the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe. Previous report was submitted on 8 November 2007. The document presented today covers the period of 2007-2011. Information presented in it only in some cases contain data from the period before 1 January 2007, or concern the situation after 31 December 2011. During the period covered by the Third Report, the legal situation of national and ethnic minorities and people who speak the regional language remained stable. In addition to the completion of the ratification, and entry into force on 1 June 2009, of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (provisions of which have already been included in the current legislation), no significant changes have been introduced to the regulating laws concerning national and ethnic minorities. National and ethnic minorities and the community using the regional language have taken full advantage of the provisions of the Act on National and Ethnic